Lupita Nyong'o remembers Chadwick Boseman in emotional tribute 3 years after his death

Lupita Nyong'o is paying tribute to her late friend and "Black Panther" co-star Chadwick Boseman, three years after his death.

In an Instagram post she shared Monday, Nyong'o talked about Boseman's impact and a memory she shared with him in South Korea five years ago.

"Three years ago today, I experienced a singular pain at the news of @chadwickboseman's death," she wrote in the caption of the post, which included a black and white photo of Boseman holding up a closed fist for the camera. "The confusion was so profound that it took months to trust the feeling of joy again."

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"This is a photo I took on film at the airport as we arrived in South Korea in 2018," she continued. "We had just learned to do the baby heart with our fingers. Here Chadwick was adding his suave flair. We spent a glorious 72 hours there, and the memory fills me with so much joy."

"Death is hard to understand, maybe even harder to accept," Nyong'o wrote. "But the love generated from the life he lived will fuel every anniversary marking his absence."

Nyong'o ended her tribute to Boseman by writing, "Chadwick may no longer be in our photos, but he will always be in our hearts."

Boseman, who is best known for his role as King T'Challa in "Black Panther," died of stage III colon cancer in 2020 at age 43. His death shocked Hollywood and his fans around the world.

Following his death, he received a posthumous Emmy for his character voice-over work for T'Challa in the animated series "What If…?," and won posthumous best actor Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards for his performance in the 2020 film "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom."